The complimentary event runs from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 26, in the auditorium at The Gooden School, 192 N. Baldwin Ave., Sierra Madre. PAIS has held the event for many years.
What sets the morning apart from a campus tour is its scale — and the suggested absence of children.
“We encourage parents and guardians to come without children if possible so they can focus on conversations with the schools, but we don’t want families to think they cannot attend if they need to bring a child,” explained Crystal Day, Head of Admissions at The Waverly School, who spoke on behalf of the consortium.
“The Kindergarten and Elementary School Options Fair gives families an opportunity to learn about several schools all in one space,” said Day. “Choosing a school can be overwhelming, and our goal is really to make the process more personable, accessible and informative.”
Each participating school will staff a table inside the auditorium with an admissions director, and some will bring parent ambassadors as well. Families can move from table to table, ask questions, and learn about each school’s mission and community, along with the events each campus has coming.
Day said the PAIS consortium wants the event to provide an opportunity for parents and guardians to have one-on-one contact with each school.
“Most of the schools do have opportunities for the students and parents to come to the school site to be able to experience the schools individually, but this is a real opportunity for parents to be able to ask thoughtful questions to each of the schools.”
Parents who arrive without a shortlist are squarely within the intended audience.
“This is just a launching point,” Day said. “Parents do not have to come knowing all of the answers or knowing even which school they would want their child to attend. This is a place for them to be able to understand a little bit more about all of the school offerings in the area.”
The point of the morning, she said, is orientation rather than decision.
“It’s a chance to meet the educators, hear different perspectives all in one place, and begin noticing which school communities that they feel aligned with for their family,” Day said. From there, “they can determine which schools they want to deep dive into a little bit more to start building out what tours and open houses they would want to go to in the future.”
A consortium of 22
PAIS counts 22 member schools; 17 will send representatives to Saturday’s kindergarten and elementary event.
“One of the strengths of the Pasadena Area Independent School Consortium is that our schools come together really to support students and families,” Day said. “Each school has their own identity and we share commitment in helping parents understand their options and find an environment where their child can thrive. These are all local independent schools with many different backgrounds.”
Value, mission and flexible tuition
Value and mission remain the consortium’s central message, Day said.
“I would say that is still a strong message, is the value and the mission of the school,” she said. “We want families to be able to find an environment where their students can thrive, and that’s creating access points for families of different backgrounds.”
Many member schools, she said, “will have some type of flexible tuition program to be able to create access points into their programs.” The admissions representatives at Saturday’s tables are the people who can explain how those programs work campus by campus.
“I would encourage families to come with a curiosity to be able to ask questions to get to know each school,” she said. “Besides that, it would be really just coming with themselves.”
If you go
The event is held indoors in The Gooden School auditorium. The main entrance is on Laurel Avenue, and attendees may park along Baldwin Avenue or Laurel Avenue.
Organizers prefer advance registration, Day said — but walk-ins are “definitely encouraged.” Families can register through the PAIS Options Event registration form.
Families who find a school they like Saturday move next into each campus’s own schedule.
“Each school will share tour dates as well as campus open house and application dates,” Day said.
The consortium also maintains a website that serves as a hub for its member schools.
A Black and Latinx outreach event spanning kindergarten through 12th grade is set for Oct. 5 at Flintridge Prep, Day said.
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